The Virgin Atlantic founder fanned the flames of a long-running feud with the boss of British Airways’ parent IAG yesterday after claiming to have won a wager made by Walsh in 2012 stating that Virgin Atlantic would not still exist in five years’ time.
At the time, Walsh made comments suggesting that the Virgin Atlantic brand could disappear after US carrier Delta Air Lines acquired a 49% stake.
The initial terms of the bet were for the loser to pay a £1 million bonus to the rival airline’s staff but Walsh wanted to shift the stakes to a "knee in the groin" from the winner to the loser.
Writing on his Virgin blog, Branson said: "Five years ago today, BA chief Willie Walsh wagered me a very public and painful bet. He bet that the Virgin Atlantic brand would disappear within five years. I disagreed.
"He said that the loser should accept a ’knee in the groin’.
"Although people might be amused to see me give Willie a low blow, I ideally have no wish to do so.
"So to settle this matter once and for all, and in the spirit of Christmas, I suggest he donates £1m to Virgin Atlantic’s team.
"If he doesn’t agree then we’ll just have to agree a time, date and place for the knee in the groin.
"Once this is over (one way or the other), lunch or dinner is on me, Willie, and perhaps we can draw a line under the past."
Walsh refused to cede defeat yesterday, claiming billionaire Branson had actually lost the bet because he "no longer owns or controls the business" after agreeing to giving up majority ownership of Virgin Atlantic earlier this year after a joint venture deal with Air France-KLM.
A Virgin spokesperson clarified that currently, the Virgin Group still owns and controls 51% of Virgin Atlantic.
Branson claims the ongoing disagreement between himself and Walsh harks back to 1993 when BA was forced to apologise and pay damages to Virgin Atlantic following a libel battle.
Responding to Branson’s blog post, Walsh said: "When Richard Branson sold out to Delta five years ago, he said he would never give up control.
“As everyone knows, he no longer owns or controls the business, a reality confirmed by the decision to sell more of his shares to Air France. He’s lost the bet."
